1. Field of Invention
The fundamental field of the invention relates to methods and apparatus that may be used to drill and complete wells at great lateral distances from a drill site. The invention may be used to reach any lateral distance from the surface drill site, from close to the drill site, to a maximum radial distance of at least 20 miles from the surface drill site. This is accomplished by using a near neutrally buoyant umbilical that is attached to a subterranean electric drilling machine. The near neutrally buoyant umbilical is capable of providing up to 320 horsepower to do work at lateral distances of at least 20 miles. This drilling application requires near neutrally buoyant umbilicals capable of providing high power at great distances and high speed data communications to and from the surface. The near neutrally buoyant umbilical reduces the frictional drag of the umbilical within the wellbore. To convey drilling equipment to great distances also requires methods and apparatus to move heavy equipment through pipes at relatively high speeds. Similar high power umbilicals having high speed data communications to and from the surface are also useful for providing power and communications to remotely operated vehicles used for subsea service work in the oil and gas industry.
2. Description of the Related Art
The oil and gas industry does not now have the capability to drill horizontally extreme distances of approximately 20 miles to commercially meet some of the challenges that exist today. Industry extended reach-drilling capability is currently between 6 and 7 miles. Conventional drilling rigs using drill pipe and mud motors at shallow angles have established these conventional records. These wells have pushed conventional drilling technologies close to their practical limit and new methods are required for longer offsets.
The industry's lack of a 20 mile drilling capability reduces accessibility to oil and gas reserves. Many areas, both onshore and offshore, have no surface access for development drilling. Onshore, this may be due to urban development as is the case in Holland, national parks or other special areas such as the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR), or other land uses that are sensitive to surface drilling operations. Offshore, the incentive is to maximize the use of existing structures and infrastructure by replacing expensive flowlines, manifold and trees. Near shore regions as found in the Santa Barbara Channel, and especially where ice may be present such as in the Arctic or near Sakhalin Island, or where migrating whales may limit seasonal operations provide significant incentives for this new 20 mile drilling capability.
The industry does not have an extreme reach lateral drilling system that is compatible with existing drilling and production infrastructure. If such a system were available, new roads, drill sites, pits, site remediation, permitting, etc. are all avoided in such onshore operations. Offshore, existing host structures will have greatly extended usefulness while reservoirs within 20-mile radii may be developed.
The industry does not have an extreme reach drilling capability that reduces the risk to the environment. If such a system were available, then operating from drilling and production centers would allow using subsurface access to the reservoirs. There would be no surface flowlines or facilities outside the regional drilling and production center. Extreme reach lateral drilling systems could eliminate the need for many of the flowlines on the ocean bottom in a regional development. However, centralized surface operations with fixed facilities require a paradigm shift in development drilling operations. The well drilling and maintenance equipment would not normally be mobile (except offshore on vessels) and it would normally spend its entire working life from one location.
Several references are cited below related to the topics of expandable casing, methods to expand tubulars and casings, fabricating composite umbilicals, and well management systems.
Relevant references to expandable casing includes U.S. Pat. No. 5,667,011, entitled “Method of Creating a Casing in a Borehole”, which issued on Sep. 16, 1997, that is assigned to Shell Oil Company of Houston, Tex., and the following U.S. Patents, entire copies of which are incorporated herein by reference:    U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,366,012; 5,348,095; 5,240,074;    4,716,965; 4,501,327; 4,495,997;    3,958,637; 3,203,451; 3,172,618;    3,052,298; 2,447,629; 2,207,478
Relevant references to expandable casing also includes U.S. Pat. No. 6,431,282, entitled “Method for Annular Sealing”, which issued on Aug. 13, 2002, that is assigned to Shell Oil Company of Houston, Tex., and the following U.S. Patents, entire copies of which are incorporated herein by reference:    U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,012,522; 5,964,288; 5,875,845;    5,833,001; 5,794,702; 5,787,984;    5,718,288; 5,667,011; 5,337,823;    3,782,466; 3,489,220; 3,363,301;    3,297,092; 3,191,680; 3,134,442;    3,126,959; 2,294,294; 2,248,028
Other relevant foreign patent documents related expandable casing include the following, entire copies of which are incorporated herein by reference:    E.P. 0,643,794; W.O. 09,933,763; W.O. 09,923,046;    W.O. 09,906,670; W.O. 09,902,818; W.O. 09,703,489;    W.O. 09,519,942; W.O. 09,419,574; W.O. 09,409,252;    W.O. 09,409,250; W.O. 09,409,249
Other publications related to expandable casing include the following documents related to Enventure Global Technology of Houston, Tex., entire copies of which are incorporated herein by reference:    (a) Campo, D., et al., “Drilling and Recompletion Applications Using Solid Expandable Tubular Technology”, SPE/IADC 72304 at 2002 SPE/IADC Middle East Drilling Technology Conference and Exhibition, 11 Mar. 2002.    (b) Moore, M., et al., “Field Trial Proves Upgrades to Solid Expandable Tubulars”, OTC 14217 at 2002 Offshore Technology Conference, 6-9 May 2002.    (c) Grant, T., et al., “Deepwater Expandable Openhole Liner Case Histories: Learnings Through Field Applications”, OTC 14218 at 2002 Offshore Technology Conference, 6-9 May 2002.    (d) Dupal, K., et al., “Realization of the Mono-Diameter Well: Evolution of a Game-Changing Technology”, OTC 14312 at 2002 Offshore Technology Conference, 6-9 May 2002.    (e) Moore, M., et al., “Expandable Linear Hangers: Case Histories”, OTC 14313 at 2002 Offshore Technology Conference, 6-9 May 2002.    (f) Nor, N., et al., “Transforming Conventional Wells to Bigbore Completions Using Solid Expandable Tubular Technology”, OTC 14315 at 2002 Offshore Technology Conference, 609 May 2002.    (g) Merritt, R., et al., “Well Remediation Using Expandable Cased-Hole Liners—Summary of Case Histories”, Texas Tech University's Southwestern Petroleum Short Course—2002 Conference.    (h) Cales, G., et al., “Subsidence Remediation—Extending Well Life Through the Use of Solid Expandable Casing Systems”, AADE 01-NC-HO-24 at March 2001 Conference.    (i) Dupal, K., et al., “Solid Expandable Tubular Technology—A Year of Case Histories in the Drilling Environment”, SPE/IADC 67770 at 2001 SPE/IADC Drilling Conference 27 Feb.-1, Mar. 2001.    (j) Dupal, K., et al., “Well Design With Expandable Tubulars Reduces Costs and Increases Success in Deepwater Applications”, Deep Offshore Technology, 2002.    (k) Daigle, C., et al., “Expandable Tubulars: Field Examples of Application in Well Construction and Remediation”, SPE 62958 at SPE Annual Technical Conference and Exhibition, 1-4 Oct. 2000.    (l) Bullock, M., et al., “Using Expandable Solid Tubulars to Solve Well Construction Challenges in Deep Waters and Maturing Properties”, IBP 275 00 at the Rio Oil & Gas Conference, 16-19 Oct. 2000.    (m) Mack, A., et al., “In-Situ Expansion of Casing and Tubing—Effect on Mechanical Properties and Resistance to Sulfide Stress Cracking”, NACE 00164 at the NACE Expo Corrosion 2000 Conference, 26-30 Mar. 2000.    (n) Lohoefer, C., et al., “Expandable Liner Hanger Provides Cost-Effective Alternative Solution”, IADC/SPE 59151 at 2000 IADC/SPE Drilling Conference, 23-25 Feb. 2000.    (o) Filippov, A., et al., “Expandable Tubular Solutions”, SPE 56500 at 1999 SPE Annual Technical Conference and Exhibition, 3-6 Oct. 1999.    (p) Haut, R., et al., “Meeting Economic Challenge of Deepwater Drilling with Expandable-Tubular Technology”, Deep Offshore Technology Conference, 1999.    (q) Bayfield, M., et al., “Burst and Collapse of a Sealed Multilateral Junction: Numerical Simulations”, SPE/IADC 52873 at 1999 SPE/IADC Drilling Conference, 9-11 Mar. 1999.
Relevant references related to expandable casing also include U.S. Pat. No. 6,354,373, entitled “Expandable Tubing for a Well Bore Hole and Method of Expanding”, which issued on Mar. 12, 2002 , that is assigned to the Schlumberger Technology Corporation of Houston, Tex., and the following U.S. Patents, entire copies of which are incorporated herein by reference:    U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,012,522; 5,631,557; 5,494,106;    5,366,012; 5,348,095; 5,337,823;    5,200,072; 5,083,608; 5,014,779;    4,976,322, 5,830,109; 4,716,965;    4,501,327; 4,495,997; 4,308,736;    3,948,321; 3,785,193; 3,691,624;    3,489,220; 3,477,506; 3,364,993;    3,353,599; 3,326,293; 3,054,455;    3,028,915; 2,734,580; 2,447,629;    2,214,226; 1,652,650; 341,327
Other relevant foreign patent documents related to expandable casing include the following, entire copies of which are incorporated herein by reference:    S.U. 1,747,673; S.U. 1,051,222; W.O. 93/25799
Relevant references for methods to expand tubulars and casings include U.S. Pat. No. 6,325,148, entitled “Tools and Methods for Use with Expandable Tubulars”, which issued on Dec. 4, 2001, that is assigned to Weatherford/Lamb, Inc. of Houston, Tex., and the following U.S. Patents, entire copies of which are incorporated herein by reference:    U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,070,671; 6,029,748; 5,979,571;    5,960,895; 5,924,745; 5,901,789;    5,887,668; 5,785,120; 5,706,905;    5,667,011; 5,636,661; 5,560,426;    5,553,679; 5,520,255; 5,472,057;    5,409,059; 5,366,012; 5,348,095;    5,322,127; 5,307,879; 5,301,760;    5,271,472; 5,267,613; 5,156,209;    5,052,849; 5,052,483; 5,014,779;    U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,997,320; 4,976,322; 4,883,121;    4,866,966; 4,848,469; 4,807,704;    4,626,129; 4,581,617; 4,567,631;    4,505,612; 4,505,142; 4,502,308;    4,487,630; 4,483,399; 4,470,280;    4,450,612; 4,445,201; 4,414,739;    4,407,150; 4,387,502; 4,382,379;    4,362,324; 4,359,889; 4,349,050;    4,319,393; 3,977,076; 3,948,321;    3,820,370; 3,785,193; 3,780,562;    3,776,307; 3,746,091; 3,712,376;    3,691,624; 3,689,113; 3,669,190;    3,583,200; 3,489,220; 3,477,506;    3,354,955; 3,353,599; 3,326,293;    3,297,092; 3,245,471; 3,203,483;    3,203,451; 3,195,646; 3,191,680;    3,191,677; 3,186,485; 3,179,168;    3,167,122; 3,039,530; 3,028,915;    2,633,374; 2,627,891; 2,519,116;    2,499,630; 2,424,878; 2,383,214;    2,214,226; 2,017,451; 1,981,525;    1,880,218; 1,301,285; 988,504
Other relevant foreign patent documents related to methods to expand tubulars and casings include the following, entire copies of which are incorporated herein by reference:    W.O. 99/23354; W.O. 99/18328; W.O. 99/02818; W.O. 98/00626;    W.O. 97/21901; W.O. 94/25655; W.O. 93/24728; W.O. 92/01139    G.B. 2329918A; G.B. 2320734A; G.B. 2313860B; G.B. 2216926A;    G.B. 1582392; G.B. 1457843; G.B. 1448304; G.B. 1277461;    G.B. 997721; G.B. 792886; G.B. 730338;    E.P. 0 961 007 A2; E.P. 0 952 305 A1; E.P. WO93/25800;    D.E. 4133802C1; D.E. 3213464A1
Another relevant publication related to methods to expand tubulars and casings includes the following, an entire copy of which is incorporated herein by reference:    Metcalfe, P. “Expandable Slotted Tubes Offer Well Design Benefits”, Petroleum Engineer International, vol. 69, No. 10 (October 1996), pp 60-63.
Relevant references for fabricating composite umbilicals includes U.S. Pat. No. 6,357,485, entitled “Composite Spoolable Tube”, which issued on Mar. 19, 2002, that is assigned to the Fiberspar Corporation, and the following U.S. Patents, entire copies of which are incorporated herein by reference:    U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,286,558; 6,148,866; 5,921,285;    6,016,845; 646,887; 1,930,285;    2,648,720; 2,690,769; 2,725,713;    2,810,424; 3,116,760; 3,277,231;    3,334,663; 3,379,220; 3,477,474;    3,507,412; 3,522,413; 3,554,284;    3,579,402; 3,604,461; 3,606,402;    3,692,601; 3,700,519; 3,701,489;    3,734,421; 3,738,637; 3,740,285;    3,769,127; 3,783,060; 3,828,112;    3,856,052; 3,856,052; 3,860,742;    3,933,180; 3,956,051; 3,957,410;    3,960,629; RE29,122; 4,053,343;    4,057,610; 4,095,865; 4,108,701;    4,125,423; 4,133,972; 4,137,949;    4,139,025; 4,190,088; 4,200,126;    4,220,381; 4,241,763; 4,248,062;    4,261,390; 4,303,457; 4,308,999;    4,336,415; 4,463,779; 4,515,737;    4,522,235; 4,530,379; 4,556,340;    4,578,675; 4,627,472; 4,657,795;    4,681,169; 4,728,224; 4,789,007;    4,992,787; 5,097,870; 5,170,011;    5,172,765; 5,176,180; 5,184,682;    5,209,136; 5,285,008; 5,285,204;    5,330,807; 5,334,801; 5,348,096;    5,351,752; 5,428,706; 5,435,867;    5,443,099; RE35,081; 5,469,916;    5,551,484; 5,730,188; 5,755,266;    5,828,003; 5,921,285; 5,933,945;    5,951,812; 6,016,845; 6,148,866;    6,286,558; 6,004,639; 6,361,299
Other relevant foreign patent documents related to fabricating composite umbilicals include the following, entire copies of which are incorporated herein by reference:    DE 4214383; EP 0024512; EP 352148; EP 505815; GB 553,110; GB 2255994; GB 2270099
Other relevant publications related to fabricating composite umbilicals include the following, entire copies of which are incorporated herein by reference:    (a) Fowler Hampton et al.; “Advanced Composite Tubing Usable”, The American Oil & Gas Reporter, pp. 76-81 (September 1997).    (b) Fowler Hampton et al.; “Development Update and Applications of an Advanced Composite Spoolable Tubing”, Offshore Technology Conference held in Houston Tex. from May 4th to 7th, 1998, pp. 157-162.    (c) Hahan H. Thomas and Williams G. Jerry; “Compression Failure Mechanisms in Unidirectional Composites”, NASA Technical Memorandum pp 1-42 (August 1984).    (d) Hansen et al.; “Qualification and Verification of Spoolable High Pressure Composite Service Lines for the Asgard Field Development Project”, paper presented at the 1997 Offshore Technology Conference held in Houston Tex. from May 5th to 8th, 1997, pp. 45-54.    (e) Haug et al.,; “Dynamic Umbilical with Composite Tube (DUCT)”, Paper presented at the 1998 Offshore Technology Conference held in Houston Tex. from May 4th to 7th, 1998, pp.699-712.    (f) Lundberg et al.; “Spin-off Technologies from Development of Continuous Composite Tubing Manufacturing Process”, Paper presented at the 1998 Offshore Technology Conference held in Houston, Tex. from May 4th to 7th, 1998, pp. 149-155.    (g) Marker et al.; “Anaconda: Joint Development Project Leads to Digitally Controlled Composite Coiled Tubing Drilling System”, Paper presented at the SPEI/COTA, Coiled Tubing Roundtable held in Houston, Tex. from 5th to 6th of Apr., 2000, pp. 1-9.    (h) Measures R. M.; “Smart Structures with Nerves of Glass”, Prog. Aerospace Sc. 26(4):289-351 (1989).    (i) Measures et al.; “Fiber Optic Sensors for Smart Structures”, Optics and Lasers Engineering 16: 127-152 (1992)    (j) Poper Peter; “Braiding”, International Encyclopedia of Composites, Published by VGH, Publishers, Inc., 220 English 23rd Street, Suite 909, New York, N.Y. 10010.    (k) Quigley et al., “Development and Application of a Novel Coiled Tubing String for Concentric Workover Services”, Paper presented at the 1997 Offshore Technology Conference held in Houston, Tex. from 5th to 8th of May 1997, pp. 189-202.    (l) Sas-Jaworsky II and Bell Steve “Innovative Applications Stimulated Coiled Tubing Development”, World Oil, 217(6): 61 (June 1996).    (m) Sas-Jaworsky II and Mark Elliot Teel; “Coiled Tubing 1995 Update: Production Applications”, World Oil, 216 (6): 97 (June 1995).    (n) Sas-Jaworsky, A. and J. G. Williams, “Advanced composites enhance coiled tubing capabilities”, World Oil, pp. 57-69 (April 1994).    (o) Sas-Jaworsky, A. and J. G. Williams, “Development of a composite coiled tubing for oilfield services”, Society of Petroleum Engineers, SPE 26536, pp. 1-11 (1993).    (p) Sas-Jaworsky, A. and J. G. Williams, “Enabling capabilities and potential application of composite coiled tubing”, Proceedings of World Oil's 2nd International Conference on Coiled Tubing Technology, pp. 2-9 (1994).    (p) Sas-Jaworsky II Alex; “Developments Position CT for Future Prominence”, The American Oil & Gas Reporter, pp. 87-92 (March 1996).    (r) Moe Wood T., et al.; “Spoolable, Composite Tubing for Chemical and Water Injection and Hydraulic Valve Operation”, Proceedings of the 11th International Conference on Offshore Mechanics and Arctic Engineering-1992, vol. III, Part A-Materials Engineering, pp. 199-207 (1992).    (s) Shuart J. M. et al.; “Compression Behavior of 45°-Dominated Laminates with a Circular Hole of Impact Damage”, AIAA Journal 24(1): 115-122 (January 1986).    (t) Silverman A. Seth, “Spoolable Composite Pipe for Offshore Applications”, Materials Selection & Design pp. 48-50 (January 1997).    (u) Rispler K. et al.; “Composite Coiled Tubing in Harsh Completion/Workover Environments”, paper presented at the SPE Gas Technology Symposium and Exhibition held in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, on Mar. 15-18, 1998, pp. 405-410.    (v) Williams G. J. et al.; “Composite Spoolable Pipe Development, Advancements, and Limitations”, Paper presented at the 2000 Offshore Technology Conference held in Houston Tex. from 1st to 4th of May 2000, pp. 1-16.
A relevant reference for well management systems includes U.S. Pat. No. 6,257,332, entitled “Well Management System”, which issued on Jul. 10, 2001, that is assigned to the Halliburton Energy Services, Inc., an entire copy of which incorporated herein by reference.
Typical procedures used in the oil and gas industries to drill and complete wells are well documented. For example, such procedures are documented in the entire “Rotary Drilling Series” published by the Petroleum Extension Service of The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Tex. that is included herein by reference in its entirety comprised of the following:    Unit I—“The Rig and Its Maintenance” (12 Lessons);    Unit II—“Normal Drilling Operations” (5 Lessons);    Unit III—Nonroutine Rig Operations (4 Lessons);    Unit IV—Man Management and Rig Management (1 Lesson);    and Unit V—Offshore Technology (9 Lessons). All of the individual Glossaries of all of the above Lessons in their entirety are also explicitly included herein, and all definitions in those Glossaries shall be considered to be explicitly referenced and/or defined herein.
Additional procedures used in the oil and gas industries to drill and complete wells are well documented in the series entitled “Lessons in Well Servicing and Workover” published by the Petroleum Extension Service of The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Tex. that is included herein by reference in its entirety comprised of all 12 Lessons. All of the individual Glossaries of all of the above Lessons in their entirety are also explicitly included herein, and any and all definitions in those Glossaries shall be considered to be explicitly referenced and/or defined herein.
Entire copies of each and every reference explicitly cited above in this section entitled “Description of the Related Art” are incorporated herein by reference.
At the time of the filing of the application herein, the applicant is unaware of any additional art that is particularly relevant to the invention other than that cited in the above defined “related” U.S. Patents, the “related” co-pending U.S. Patent Applications, the “related” co-pending PCT Application, and the “related” U.S. Disclosure Documents that are specified in the first paragraphs of this application.